Film-clasp.



1. R.' DUNAVANT.

' FILM CLASP.

, 16. 1,216,967. Patented Feb.20,1917.

'JOHN :a DUNAvANT, or JET, OKLAHOMA.

. FILM-CLASP.

specification of Letters raient.

Patented Feb. 20,1917.

Application filed December 13, 1916. Serial N o. 136,806.

To all 'whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, JOHN R. DUNAVANT, a citizen of the United States, residing vat J et, in the county of Alfalfa and State of Oklahoma, have invented new and useful Improvements in Film-Clasps, of which'the following is a specification.

This invention relates to winding and reeling, and more particularly to web fasteners for attaching a web or a strip to the reel; and the object of the same is to produce an improved clasp for holding the inner1 end of a film on the core or hub of a film ree It is well known to operators of motion picture apparatus that vwhen a delicate film is to be wound on a reel its end must be clasped to the core or hub thereof in such manner as to hold it reliably without tearing the film, and when the same is unwound from the reel means must be provided to disconnect the end from the hub with the same care. These objects are carried out by my improved clasp which is operated entirely from the outside of the reel, and whose construction is more fully set forth in the following specification and shown in the drawings, wherein:

Figure l is a front elevation of a reel equipped with this invention.

Fig. 2, is a vertical section through the reel and clasp, showing the latter in full lines as closed and in dotted lines as open.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the clasp with its several parts disconnected from each other.

In the drawings the heads or ends E of the reel are shown as having spokes Sand rims It, and the vheads are connected by a central core or hub H as usual. When applying a film F to this reel, one end must be attached or clasped in some manner to the hub H, after which the ent-ire reel is revolved. in a proper direction to wind the film around such hub and around its own convolutions thereon. The present invention contemplates the provision of an improved form of clasp for this purpose.

Coming now to the details of the invention as well illustrated in the drawings, I

'lorm in one end F of the reel a hole or slot l extending across the base of one of the spokes S, and against the outer face of this end of the reel I lay a pintle 2 which is a short piece of rod or heavy wire extending longitudinally of the slot and fastened at riphery of the hub II which is indicated by.

dotted lines in Fig. l. So much of my invention as has been described forms one element.

As a second element I bend a rather stift' piece of wire into the shape shown at the right of Fig. 8. That is to say, starting 'from the point 4l- I form the wire into a loop 5, then give it a sharp bend 6 at right angles to the length of the loop and contin'ue it into a coil 7', then carry it upward and again downward to form a tongue 8. On the other side of the tongue I form a second coil 9, and from the coil a straight stretch projects through the remote end of the loop 5 in an arm 10 whose free end, which is the other end of the wire, constitutes a handle 11. The two coils 7 and 9 are of a size to loosely embrace the pintle 2 which acts as a pivot for this element, and when in place these coils stand within the slot l, as seen in Fig. 1, and the loop 5 stands on the outside of the reel end E while the tongue 8 stands inside the same and is of a length to lie across the hub H and clasp the film F there to, as seen in Fig. 2. Y

The third element of this clasp is a spring of fine, highly tempered wire, seen at the bottom of Fig. 3. The central portion is coiled into a heliX asV indicated at l2, from one end of which rises an arm 13 which lies against the outer face of the reel, and from the other end of the helix projects another arm lllwhich is intended to extend through the loop 5, the outer end of the arm 14: bein formed into an eye l5 to surround one site bar of such loop tovprevent the displacementI of parts. The tension of this spring normally throws the arm 10 outward and the tongue 8, upward off' the hub H, but when the operator grasps the handle and raises it against the spoke S he puts the Vspring under tension and turns the two coils on the pintle 2 so that the tongue 8 is turned down onto the hub II and clasps the film against the same. Finally I make a U-shaped incision into the spoke Simmediately above this clasp, and bend ont the metal within such incision into a hook 20 under which the arm 10 may be engaged to hold the clasp in working position. I have described this improved film clasp as applied to a reel when made, but it is obvious that it could be applied to an old reel already in use by cutting the slot l, form-V the hook 20, lays the end of the film F onv the hub H, raises the arm and rengages it with the hook Q0, and then turns the Vreel to wind up the -lm as usual. On the other hand, when a film is unwound from a reel provided with this clasp and the inner end of the film is to be removed, it is only neeessary to unhook the arm from the hooks 2O and release vit, when the spring throws this clasp outward and raises the tongue 8 oli' the hub so that the film comes free of the latter without injuring the parts. The entire device is light and simple and occu-A pies extremely little space, and I do not wish to be limited to the materials or proportions of parts.

e Ihat is claimed as new is:

. l. rIhecombination with a reel compris-V ing a hub, and two heads, one of which is provided with a slot transverse to its diameter and just outside the line of the hub, and a hook on this head and on the same ldiameter farther remote from the axis than arm lies against the reel head and may be engaged Vwith said hook, and a spring throwing the tongue normally off the hub and the other arm of said element outward.

2. The Ycombination with a reel comprising a hub, and two heads, one of which isV provided with aV slot transverse toits diameter and just outside the line of the hub; of a pintle secured to'said head and overlying the slot, an L-shapedelement pivotally mounted at its angle on said pintle with its innerrend constituting a tongue adapted to lie on the hub when its outer arm lies against the reel head, means for throwing the tongue normally off the hub, and means for resisting said throwing means. Y

3. The combination with a film roel'comprising a hub and two heads, one of `which is provided with an opening outside the line of the hub; of an L-shaped element pivoted; at its angle in said. opening, its inner arm constituting an arm adapted to lie ou the hub and its outer arm constituting a handle, a spring throwing the tongue normally olf the hub, and a hook on the reel head with which the arm. may be manually engaged to hold the tongue against the hub.

d. The combination with a film reel comprising a hub and two heads, one of which is provided with an opening outside the line of the hub, and a pintlel overlying said opening; of an Lshaped element having at its angle a pair of loops revolubly mounted on said pintle, its inner arm constituting a tongue adapted to lie on thel hub when its outer arm lies against the reel head, and a spring coiled on the pintle between said loops with one end engaging the reel and the other engaging the element for holding the latter normally at one extreme of its movement.

5. The combination with a film reel comprising a hub and two heads, one of which has a slot transverse to its diameter outside the line of the hub, loops struck up from said head at the extremities of the slot, and

'a pintle overlying the slot with its ends secured in said loops; of an' element of stiff wire bent near one end into a transverse loop, extending thence into a coil, thence into a tongue, thence into a second coil spaced from the first, and thence into Van arm projectingy through the loop and having a handle at its extremity, the coils being revolubly mounted on said pintle witl in said slot; and a spring coiled on the pintle between the coils with one end engaging the reel and the other engaging said loop to turn the element normally to one extreme position, for the purpose set forth.

rIn testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

JCI-IN R. DUNAVANT.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of atents,

Washington, DC. Y 

